


First Order Personnel Handbook: Excerpts and Examples from Leadership.

by rudbeckia



Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Classic Kylux, First Kiss, Hux has a lightsaber kink, Hux is Not Nice, Hux is a manipulative little shit, M/M, Pre-TFA, canonverse, kylo is clueless
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-19
Updated: 2018-08-22
Packaged: 2019-06-29 07:18:35
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 4,420
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15724608
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rudbeckia/pseuds/rudbeckia
Summary: Newly promoted General Armitage Hux and newly arrived Kylo Ren really need to take official First Order advice on how to maintain a positive work environment.A sequence of short dialogue prompt fics ordered into something vaguely coherent.1. With all due respect sir, you can eat a bag of dicks2. Thank you, but I hope I never meet you again3. He’s my number one despiser4. Hold my hat5. You thought you could get away with that, didn’t you?6. Don’t apologise. That’s not the point. Did you mean it?7. Are you still awake?8. So are we doing this or what?9. Well, make it quick, I don’t have all day (E rating)





	1. Seek to develop a healthy working relationship based on mutual respect.

**AH 1453:** _Today’s inspection was sloppy. In future, you will call me sir in front of the troops._  
**KR 1455:** _With all due respect sir, you can eat a bag of dicks._

Personal comlink clenched in his fist, Hux marches along the primary corridor of the command section with his reddened face set in a snarl. Lower-ranking officers scatter out of sight or flatten themselves against the walls, all perfect attention and crisp salutes in case their general needs to vent some of his rage before he sights his target. Hux pays them no heed. He marches with single-minded determination until he reaches the commanding officers’ accommodation deck. 

The door yields to his code cylinder and he storms inside, yelling. “REN!”  
Ren faces him with a crooked smile. “You should knock and wait, Hux.”  
“I demand to know the meaning behind this offensive com!”  
Ren shrugs when Hux brandishes his comlink. “I should think it obvious,” he says. “It’s not that deep.”  
Hux almost spits his anger. “You will address me as ‘sir’ or ‘general’. I outrank you.”  
“No you don’t. I’m not part of your little army.” Ren steps towards Hux. “I am above it.”  
Hux takes one step forward and points at Ren’s chest. “You are on my ship at Leader Snoke’s request. I insist that you address me with resp—“  
“No!” Ren holds a hand up and Hux is silenced, breath stilled in his lungs. “Snoke has put you and your ship at my disposal. You do not get to insist anything. You will speak to me in a manner that befits my station as your leader’s chosen successor.”

Released, Hux is stunned into silence. He glares at Ren, mouth hanging open, for several seconds.  
“You... Snoke’s heir? But—” He shakes his head. “No. You don’t get to show up out of nowhere and take over after only three days. I have worked for this my whole life. I know how the Order functions, inside and out. I know how to train stormtroopers and I have studied how to conduct a winning battle on the ground or in orbit. I have experience, Ren. You... what do you have?” 

“This,” Ren says. He pulls out his lightsaber and ignites it, giving a simultaneous dramatic stamp of his foot. Hux steps back and Ren crowds into his space, holding the red, crackling blade inches from Hux’s face. Hux’s pupils dilate and he catches his breath. Ren deactivates the lightsaber and lunges forward to meet Hux in a clashing, clumsy kiss.


	2. Encourage integration by inviting new crew members to join in with organised social activities.

“Thank you, but I hope I never meet you again.”   
Ren turns away. Hux grits his teeth. His face is hot and he sucks his lower lip, gripping it between his teeth to prevent any visible tremble. He blinks away the pricking behind his eyelids.  
“A simple ‘no’ would have been sufficient,” he says once he’s sure his voice will not betray him. “There’s no need to be so... so uppity about it, Ren. It was only a casual invitation to dine with my command crew on your return from The Supremacy.”  
“Snoke will keep me with him or send me on a more fruitful mission to find Luke Skywalker.” Ren pauses but does not face Hux. “I do not expect to return to The Finalizer. My time here is unlikely to be productive.”  
Hux pushes his disappointment down deep. “Well then. I suppose this is goodbye.”

_Am I nothing to him? What was it to him when he threatened me then kissed me and pushed me up against the wall? Kark it, I should have known. I’d’ve done anything for him in that moment. Finally I meet someone who sets me on fire and he kriffing hates me._

He doesn’t watch Ren’s shuttle leave. He refuses to spend the resources to track it through hyperspace, although he would relish the opportunity to calibrate the new system he has designed for that purpose. So it is a complete surprise when his door hisses open fourteen hours later and Kylo Ren marches into his bedchamber.  
“What the kriff, Ren? Get out!”  
“You did this.”  
“Don’t talk rot. I did nothing except my usual duties and now I am in bed trying to forget... trying to sleep.”  
“You.” Kylo steps closer and points at Hux. “Did this. To me.”  
Hux sits up and orders the lights to fifty percent. He blinks at Ren’s wild expression and raises his eyebrows when he sees the hilt of Ren’s lightsaber in his hand.  
“I don’t have the faintest idea what you are raving about. Are you unwell? Have you come here to put me out of my misery?”  
“Ha!” Ren drops the lightsaber and his knees buckle. He sits heavily on the edge of Hux’s bed. “Misery.” Hux waits to see what Ren will do, resisting the temptation to reach out and touch. Ren sighs and stares at the opposite wall. “Was it all nothing to you?” Ren asks. “Are you so cold that you couldn’t ask me to stay?”  
Hux frowns in confusion. “What?”  
“I thought we had something.” Ren turns to look at Hux. “I thought I could get a reaction from you, that you would tell me to stay. But you let me leave with no sign that you felt anything for me. Snoke sent me straight back. Deal with it or you will never be strong, he said.”

Ren lifts his lightsaber hilt from the floor and studies it. Hux pulls the blanket up a little higher and slides his hand under his pillow to grasp the blaster he keeps there. “So you came back to... deal with me?” Ren nods. Hux raises his voice. “How could I ask you to stay when you made it so clear that you hate me? That our little tryst was merely a moment of weakness? Well you best do it quickly then!”  
Ren ignites the lightsaber and the room is bathed in a red glow. He shakes his head and turns to face Hux, unruly waves framing dark eyes and lips that Hux sees tremble. Hux reaches out and brushes a thick strand back from Ren’s face. He releases his hold on the blaster hidden under the blanket at the same time as Ren drops his lightsaber. Ren’s on top of Hux in a heartbeat, pinning his wrists above his head and kissing him with a desperation that Hux returns.  
“Stay,” says Hux in a moment of calm after the kisses have softened. “Deal with me however you please.”


	3. Maintain a professionally courteous manner in all conversations about First Order personnel.

“He’s my number one despiser,” says General Hux with a smirk at the faces around the conference table: some space-sick pale from life without regular sun exposure, others ghostly holoprojections from their own conference facilities on their own ships.  
“Perhaps you could invite him to strategy briefings in future,” suggests Colonel Galka of _The Predator,_ a small, fast response craft she commands with surgical skill that belies her age.  
“I think not!” argues Moden Canady of _The Fulminatrix._ “We need more experienced, seasoned commanders making the big decisions. People who held rank when the Empire ruled. Not some snot-nosed, bucket-headed, Vader wannabe who pops up from nowhere and thinks he can take charge.”   
“Moden, please,” Hux knows Canady will see the use of his first name as a rebuke for his jibe against the relative youth of many First Order commanders. He holds up his hand and the room falls silent. All eyes are on him and his smirk widens into a smile. “Although I have invited him, Master Ren has no interest in joining us for strategy meetings. The day to day grind of keeping the First Order running smoothly and expanding rapidly doesn’t concern him directly.”  
“If he claims to be Snoke’s chosen successor,” pipes up another member of the command council, “where does that leave—“   
Hux silences him with a glare. “We all know that Leader Snoke harbours some rather outdated mystical beliefs. Master Ren is being trained by Snoke as his successor in that regard only. He has no intention of taking over military command.”   
“He doesn’t need to.” Hux looks across the table. The pink face of Admiral Longstar of _The Dependable_ sneers back. “All Ren has to do is tell you what to do, and you do it like a grateful pup, Armitage.”  
Hux’s smile thins. “I assure you, Jorban, that Ren wields no influence over my operational decision making process. He may offer suggestions now and then but I pay them no heed. Snoke puts his trust in Ren for spiritual concerns, and in me for military matters. Now, is that it for ‘any other business’? Yes? Good! Then I declare this meeting closed.”

Kylo Ren is waiting for him in the training space Hux has allocated for his exclusive use. Hux watches as Ren works through a complicated sequence of moves, a wooden staff standing in for his lightsaber. When he recognises the final stance, Ren standing still with his chest heaving and his staff in a blocking position, he calls out.  
“You should have come to the meeting, Ren. I had to sit there and listen to the old bastards complain about you.”  
“Did you defend me?” Ren asks, swapping his staff for his lightsaber.  
“Of course not,” scoffs Hux. “I was too busy fending off the accusation that I’m your cur, brought to heel on your command.”  
Ren ignites his lightsaber and whirls through the saber-form again, faster. Hux watches, eyes wide and jaw slack, as Ren changes the sequence and slashes wildly into his training dummy. It falls in smoking pieces to the floor. Ren stands still for a few seconds, then turns and advances on Hux, saber still crackling red plasma. Hux knows his heart rate has risen and there’s a familiar, exciting tingle in his groin as he overrides his primitive instincts that tell him to flee. Ren stops two steps away and grins.  
“So if I order you to come, you will refuse?”  
Hux takes a step closer so that he can feel the heat and buzz of Ren’s weapon. “That all depends,” he says, “on the context.”


	4. Keep your uniform clean and wear it, correctly, with pride.

“Hold my hat.” 

It’s all he can think of to say to stall Kylo Ren, and it makes him cringe the instant he realises he’s spoken. Ren’s on him, crackling plasma blade hot by his cheek, and he can’t step back because his shoulders are already flat against the gymnasium wall. When Ren crowded into his space, the greatcoat slid from his shoulders to tangle his feet, and his head bumped the plasteel so that he feels like his cap is about to slide forward over his face. He’s immobile. 

Hux tries to swallow, mouth dry and heart racing. He’s been too forward, said too much, far too soon and he’s ruined this fragile thing they’ve been building. Six words to blow away the whole, flimsi construction, because despite all the hints and carefully ambiguous offers, all Ren has done so far is kiss him and leave. For a second, Hux believes that Ren might sweep the searing blade down and cut him into smoking pieces like the remains of the training dummy. But with a click the heat is gone and Ren steps back. Hux breathes deeply.  
“Is that what you want?” Ren asks. “You’re afraid of me, but... there’s something else.”  
“You’re terrifying.” Hux keeps steady eye contact with Ren and forces out a nervous laugh. “It’s exhilarating. Who wouldn’t want that!”  
Ren frowns at him. “Don’t play games with me, general.”

Ren whirls and is gone, outer clothing scooped up and bundled under his arm, door hissing closed after him. Hux pushes himself away from the wall and takes a step to follow. As his left foot lands, Hux looks down at the crumpled fabric of his ruined cap.


	5. Develop excellent communication skills. Be clear in all your verbal and written exchanges with colleagues.

**KR 1945:** _You thought you could get away with that, didn’t you?_  
**AH 2019:** _I have no idea what you are referring to._  
**KR 2025:** _Goading me into threatening you._  
**KR 2027:** _Did you think I wouldn’t work it out? Is that your idea of fun?_  
**AH 2156:** _Believe me, this is as unexpected for me as it is for you._  
**KR 2205:** _What is?_  
**AH 2209:** _We should talk._

Hux sits back and sips his half-cooled tea. He watches his text coms for a few minutes but no reply comes. He downs the rest of his drink in one gulp, face screwing up at the bitterness of the last, stewed cup, and composes a careful invitation.

 _Come to my chambers at your convenience._  
Delete. Too open to misinterpretation if Ren is in a suspicious frame of mind.

 _I have made an appointment for you and I to conduct negotiations confidentially. Conference room 5 at 0845 tomorrow._  
Delete. Too formal. Ren will simply not attend.

 _You are quite unlike anyone I have ever met before and I happen to find you rather attractive in a mysterious kind of way. Why is that a problem?_  
Hux laughs and shakes his head at the ridiculousness of that message, although it feels good to type it out. His thumb goes for the delete key and the door buzzes at the same time. Startled, his thumb drifts over the wrong command.

The door opens and Kylo Ren walks in. He stops a few feet from Hux. “What do you need to talk about that has not already been said?”  
Hux scowls at Ren’s rudeness. “Take that karking bucket off your head when you speak to me in private.”

Ren is silent. Hux tightens his lips and looks away. “Well then. I suppose I have nothing more to say after all.”

It could be Hux’s imagination but Ren seems to stiffen his posture before he marches out. Hux sits for a few more minutes, fists clenched tight, considering punching the cushions a few times. He calms eventually, stretches his hands and gets up from the sofa. He gets ready for bed, slipping between cool, smooth sheets with a disappointed sigh that Ren turned out to be such a kriffing karkhole after all. He lifts his datapad and checks his coms one last time. His stomach flutters, his face warms and he curses in embarrassment when he realises what has happened.

 **AH 2226:** _You are quite unlike anyone I have ever met before and I happen to find you rather attractive in a mysterious kind of way. Why is that a problem?_  
**KR 2234:** _That is not the problem._  
**KR 2247:** _We should talk._


	6. Take responsibility for your actions. A First Order officer corrects for accidental errors promptly and learns from mistakes.

”Don’t apologise. That’s not the point. Did you mean it?“  
Hux stands just inside Ren’s doorway, wearing his long, black robe, with a greeting frozen on his lips. The room stinks of burning and the air recycler unit is whirring furiously. Ren is pointing at him, helmet and lightsaber hilt discarded on the floor, and there is a pattern of molten scars in the wall.  
“I didn’t come here to apologise,” Hux says. “I did not intend to send that com. But since I did send it and you have seen it, I suppose I ought to deal with the consequences.” He waves a hand at the damaged wall. “Calmly.”

Ren snarls and lunges into Hux’s space. His hand shoots out and the lightsaber hilt flies to meet his grasp. Hux stares, open mouthed, as the red blade swings close to his head and sparks against the wall. He flicks his wrist and his dagger drops into his hand, then sweeps his arm upwards, the point of the blade under Ren’s chin, but he’s pushed violently and the dagger drops from his grip. Ren boxes him in, holding his wrists above his head and pressing him bodily against the wall. Hux feels his heart thump in his chest and his groin tingle. He takes an involuntary little gasp.  
“What you want me to do next, Hux.”  
“Can’t you tell?”

Hux’s voice is a whisper in Ren’s ear and he feels Ren shiver. Ren pushes against him and turns his head to find Hux’s lips with a kiss that surprises Hux with its softness.  
“I don’t want it to be like this,” Ren says. He steps back and Hux shakes out his arms.  
“What do you mean?” Hux slips the dagger’s sheath from his forearm, retrieves his blade from the floor and slips it back into place. He sees Ren watching him. “What do you want _it_ to be like?” In reply, Ren steps forward, cradles Hux’s head and kisses him with light, hesitant touches of his lips. Hux responds with a smile. “I had thought you feral, Ren. Imagined you holding me down and taking whatever you desired.”  
“Don’t treat me like an animal, Hux,” Ren says quietly, looking away. “And don’t try to manipulate me into playing a part in your twisted fantasy.”  
Hux pulls on the tie of his robe and it falls open to reveal a long sliver of pale skin. Ren’s eyes rove down then up and Hux moves to reveal more, a slender thigh slipping out from between crisp folds of black starsilk. He waits for a few seconds until Ren’s eyes widen and his eyebrows rise, then feigns embarrassment and closes his robe.  
“Please accept my apologies. It’s late.” Hux takes three steps to the door then looks back at Ren. “I want to go to bed.”


	7. Adhere to a disciplined routine of activity and rest. A First Order officer is always alert for duty.

“Are you still awake?”  
The voice is so quiet Hux wonders if he heard it or merely dreamed it, the product of wishful thinking on his fatigued brain. But it sounds again.  
“Hux, are you awake?”  
He opens his eyes. “Well I am now, Ren. Lights—“  
“No!”  
There’s only a faint green and amber glow from indicator lights on the life support sensors. A weight settles onto the side of the bed. Hux rubs his eyes and sees Ren’s profile in night-dark monochrome. “I’d given up on you tonight. What time is it?”  
“Not important. Move over.”

Ren stands and Hux shifts to occupy the opposite side of the bed. There’s the soft thump of clothing hitting the floor, and Ren clambers into Hux’s warmth. He’s chilled enough that Hux takes a sharp breath in and laughs softly.  
“You’re freezing. What have you been doing?”  
“Meditating.”  
“Asking the force what it thinks you should do?”  
“Something like that.”  
“And?” Hux waits but Ren is still and silent. “What did the force advise?”  
“I don’t know. I fell asleep in my chair.”

Hux can’t help his laughter. It starts as a snigger then grows until he’s heaving silently and crying. Ren lets out a huff that turns into a whole body shake that makes the bed judder. It takes a few minutes for Hux to calm down and Ren to warm up, then Hux nestles into Ren’s side, head on his shoulder, arm flung across his chest. Ren sighs and slides his hand from Hux’s wrist to his elbow. “No monomolecular dagger?”  
Hux strokes Ren’s skin slowly. “No. No lightsaber?”  
“No. What about the blaster under your pillow?”  
“Fully charged.”  
Ren pushes his hand under the pillow, finds the blaster and throws it across the floor.  
“Any other hidden hardware?”  
Hux sniggers. Ren rolls, pushing Hux onto his back, manoeuvring himself carefully on top and kissing him. Hux runs his fingers through Ren’s hair and closes his eyes, feeling Ren’s solid weight pushing him into the mattress. He slides his legs out and bends his knees just enough that he feels Ren shift and settle, putting pressure on his cock. Ren’s hard too. Hux gives a slow roll of his hips and is rewarded with a quiet whimper.  
“Well then,” Hux murmurs. “Since you don’t want a rough fuck up against the wall, tell me what you do want.”  
“I want,” Ren says after a few more delightful thrusts that make Hux bite his lip and smile, “my first time to be gentle.”


	8. Strive to be honest, reliable and trustworthy. Be a credit to your uniform.

“So are we doing this or what?” Ren’s confusion at being bucked off Hux shows in his voice.  
“Lights forty percent.” Hux blinks in the dim illumination until his eyes adjust. “Your first time. Your _first time._ Your—“  
“—first time. I’m pleased the concept hasn’t slipped past your understanding.” Ren scowls at Hux. “I thought you wanted me. You were not subtle about it.”  
“I did.” Hux sighs. “I mean, I do. But it’s your first kriffing time and—”  
“—and I chose you.” Ren sits up and swings his legs out of bed. “I see that was a mistake.”  
“No!” Hux reaches out and tries to grab Ren’s wrist. Ren wrenches his arm away as he stands up and Hux lands sprawling on his front on top of the covers. “I thought... well. I mean, _how_ is this your first time?”  
Ren shrugs. “Lack of offers. I’m not attractive.”  
“Have you _seen_ yourself?” Hux blurts out. “You’re...” He waves his hand up and down, indicating Ren’s still-nude form. “Your physical attributes make me wish you would pin me against the wall and have me, or hold me down and bite me while you...” Hux shakes his head. “I thought surely you must have had wide experience with other people.”  
“Sorry to disappoint,” Ren snaps, lifting his tunic and shaking it out.  
“Don’t go.”  
“Why not? I’m not what you thought I was.” Ren pulls the tunic over his head and picks up his leggings. He turns his back on Hux. “This was a stupid idea. I thought someone like you, with _wide experience,_ could show me how to do things I’ve only ever heard about.”  
“Don’t go.” Hux gets up and puts a hand on Ren’s back. “Stay,” he says quietly. “Perhaps we can learn together.”

Ren freezes with his leggings pulled up just past his knees. He turns his head to stare at Hux. “You mean...” His knees give way and he sits on the edge of the bed. “I assumed you would have had a steady supply of lovers, with your looks and position. I’ve seen how some of the other officers look at you. You could take your pick.”  
“The few crushes I notice are flattering, but to indulge would be bad for morale,” Hux says, sitting beside Ren. “I’m their commanding officer and that makes me unattainable.”  
Ren shakes his head and laughs. “So you chose me because I’m not part of the hierarchy? I’m available?”  
“No,” Hux leans close and kisses Ren’s cheek. “I chose you because you render me incapable of rational thought.” He kisses the side of Ren’s neck. Ren dips his head and lets out an _oh!_ “I want to make you helpless with pleasure.” Hux moves so that he can drag his teeth across the back of Ren’s neck and he tugs at the fabric of Ren’s tunic. “I want you to take this off and get back into my bed.”


	9. Make productive use of your time, on duty and off. Complete your duties efficiently and use relaxation time to hone your skills.

“Well, make it quick, I don’t have all day.”  
Hux swaggers into Ren’s gymnasium as soon as he sees that Ren has completed his third saber-form, finishing with his lightsaber blade held steady, barely an inch from the training dummy’s charred and scarred trunk. He’s been watching regularly for three weeks and Ren is magnificent.

Ren closes his eyes, smiles, then sets his face neutral before he turns. He explodes into action, whirling the blade and powering forward. Hux trots in reverse, his back thumping against the wall an instant before Ren’s lightsaber ploughs through the damaged plasteel beside him. Hux whimpers and closes his eyes. There’s searing heat by his cheek and he turns his face away, but with a click the blade is gone and Ren is pushing his wrists up above his head and kissing him hard.

Hux’s belt clatters to the floor when Ren unclips it with one pull and opens the front of Hux’s tunic. He unfastens and pushes down Hux’s uniform trousers, almost ripping the fabric in haste.  
“Ren!” Hux cries out, eyes wide and pupils dilated, cheeks pink and lips parted. Ren kisses him again, more gently. Hux leans in, following when Ren pulls his head back to speak.  
“Hux. I want you. Now. Here.” Ren turns Hux and holds him face to the wall, leans in and murmurs in his ear. “Well?”  
“Yes! Pocket.”  
Ren finds what Hux has brought. He grins in delight. “I see you got my com. Did you get ready?”  
“Nobody likes to be kept waiting, you bru— OH!”  
Hux bites his lip as Ren’s slicked cock slides into his stretched hole. He takes a breath, holds it, then releases, breathing out the words, _”fuck me fast and hard, Kylo.”_  
Ren holds still until Hux starts to squirm, then takes slow, shallow thrusts that make Hux almost howl in frustration. Hux tries to thrust back and set the pace but Ren pushes in deeper and stops.  
“Behave or I will pull out and leave you to finish on your own.”  
“Finish?” Hux protests. “But we’ve barely kriffing started!”

Ren laughs and starts again slowly. Hux feels an arm holding him secure around his middle and a hand pushing his wrists to the wall above his head. He rests his forehead on the wall and moans approval when Ren gets the pace and angle just right. The anticipation of his climax is almost overwhelming, and Hux tries to move his hand, but Ren grips it. Instead, Ren’s other hand slips lower and clasps Hux’s swollen cock, stroking in rhythm with his thrusts.

Hux is undone in seconds. He breathes hard in time with the spasms of his orgasm then groans. Ren’s still thrusting but within a minute he comes too, releases Hux and leans both forearms against the wall. After a few seconds, Ren pulls out and rolls so his back is against the wall.  
“Was that what you wanted?”  
Hux smiles at him. “You didn’t tell me you planned to tease!”  
“Should I not?”  
“I liked it. It was a surprise.” Hux checks his chrono. “Kark it! I’m late for a command council meeting. I’m going to show up with a crumpled uniform and stinking of what we just did. And I will probably not be able to sit still. They will _know_.”  
“Sorry,” Ren says. “I thought the time thing was just part of the game.”  
“Oh, don’t apologise,” Hux says with a smile. “I bet none of them have got this lucky in their entire lives. Now, I will get cleaned up and go before I talk emotional drivel.”

Ren grins, fixes his training clothes and kisses Hux softly.  
“Love you too, Armitage.”


End file.
